“I’m not one to talk about my privacy, but I found it a bit hurtful to hear that my lack of presence was because I have no interest in Formula 1 when in reality I was in a hospital bed. But this is the world of Formula 1, where we do not seek to understand, we judge,” he added.

Nonetheless, speculation that Whitmarsh is a leading candidate to be Lotus’ longer term team boss is now rife.

“There has been contact with Martin,” a source with close links to Lotus told Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper.

“He is not necessarily the only name they have approached. There are perhaps three but he might be the most appealing of them, given his experience at McLaren.” (GMM)